A Christmas Dinner
by Crystabel.Shalott
Summary: Tom and Sybil and their children host a combined Christmas and Channukah celebration with family and friends. (My secret Santa story for Gothamgirl28)


_A/N: Written for **Gothamgirl28** for the S/T secret Santa exchange. Her prompt was: Tom and Sybil and their children host a combined Christmas and Channukah celebration with family and friends._

_I'm sorry that I didn't manage to mention Irish and English traditions more, I hope you'll enjoy it anyway._

_Sorry about eventual mistakes._

_Merry Christmas!_

* * *

**A Christmas Dinner**

The living room smelled like Christmas. It was a peculiar mix of pine, cinnamon, wax, and citrus that ended mixing up with the scent emanated from the dishes set upon the dining table.

A small, over decorated Christmas tree towered in a corner and the lights, fixed upon it, gave the surrounding space a warm and cosy atmosphere. The presents, piled up under the lower branches, were wrapped in bright and colored paper full of ribbons and rosettes.

At first sight one could have thought about it looking very similar from a scene represented on some sort of publicity pamphlet - whether it was for furniture, food, or decoration, was of little importance - left in the mail box but, at a more attentive glance, one would have noticed that it couldn't have been more different. Sure the room may have represented the same thing but in the end it all reflected the taste and inclinations of the family whose living room it was. It was a reflection of them and in the eyes of the Branson family it couldn't have been more perfect.

Sure the two tables that had been placed near another were not really of the same high and nothing would have helped to hide the fact that from one board to the other there was a difference of a three centimeters -ish, that caused the cloth to make a funny form of a slide that, not short before, had driven Evelyn Branson - the six year old daughter of Tom and Sybil - mad.

Not only the tables, the tree to had its own characteristics that, to be sure, would have never appeared on a magazine. It wasn't much the fact that it was over decorated, merely the way it was decorated. Because Evelyn and her little sister Saoirse had had the work to put things on it, or rather they were put in charge of the entire situation, it resulted in having spots with clusters of decorations. Entire spots covered only by red tinsel, for example. Or the fact that already made decorations were left out in favor of those that had been hand made by the girls with the help of their parents on rainy afternoons. But most of all, something that would have ever found a place on the trees were the small stuffed animals, in shape of polar bears and reindeer, bought by IKEA that had a place of honor (always at the front and never facing the wall) and their own names.

It was, in short, nothing that could have been ruled by design or anything along that line. Just fun and that's what Christmas had to be in first place: a moment of joy, family and fun.

Tom let himself fall down on the sofa with a thud and, in the middle of it, he grabbed Sybil by her waist and pulled her down with him until the both of them - Sybil on his lap, her back resting against his chest and his chin on her shoulder - sat there and let out a loud sight. Finally everything was at the right place: the table was set, the room tidied and so on. Soon Martha would have arrived bringing with her the rest of the things they would have needed and then really the last thing that missed were the guests.

"I think it looks presentable enough" stated Sybil, snuggling closer to Tom.

"It will be a success and, as soon as Martha arrives, we can truly say that everything is ready?"

"Do you think it was a good idea to volunteer? I mean Edith did say that she could have done it"

"Don't worry about it darling. We'll manage"

"We are the Bransons after all" she replied with a smile. And it was true, if there was something that Sybil had learned through the years was that she and Tom, no matter how difficult the circumstances, always managed to come out of them. No exceptions made. And where others only saw madness or folly they always saw a way out.

Tom chuckled and then placed a soft and gentle kiss on Sybil's lips. It was in moments like this that he found himself even more in love with her, the love for her and his daughter (who were at the moment in Sybil and Tom's bedroom watching 'Ronja - The Robber's Daughter') was getting stronger day by day, so much that sometimes he thought that he might have burst because of it.

"Aye, that we are. And I couldn't be more..."

"Daaaaaaaaaaad" Evelyn's voice interrupted him mid sentence "We have a problem"

"Better go and check"

Sybil stood up and followed Tom into their bedroom. Saoirse and Evelyn, rolled up under the covers with their father's laptop opened in front of them, looked up at him and Saoirse spoke out first.

"It doesn't move"

"We didn't do anything da. We were watching and then it stopped going forward and it wasn't us. Promise" Evelyn blurted out nervously as soon as her sister had finished talking.

"Don't worry, it can happen. But I think it's time to get ready now, you can finish it tomorrow"

"Have you and mom finished to set the table and doing stuff?"

"Aye, want to check it out yourself?"

"Yes!" squealed Evelyn, pulling the covers back and running towards the living room without waiting for anyone.

"Da?" Saoirse stood up and held her arms stretched forwards, giving Tom a sign that she wanted to be carried to the other room.

"Come here"

He, Saoirse and Sybil reached Evelyn to the other room. Evelyn, who with the most attentive look, was studying carefully the disposition of things around her with the same look that she always imagined the detectives in her books had while examining a scene. She moved a couple of forks and knives so that they all were placed in the same way, making the table all more symmetrical, before making a satisfied nod and give her parents her approval.

"It stands up with how things at Downton are made?" asked Sybil.

"It's better, because you and da made it. But the best thing of all is the Christmas tree!" Evelyn paused a moment "Saoirse and I did it"

"Of course"

"When will Granny Martha come?"

"She should be here any minute"

"And the others?"

"Not time after that. But first granny Martha has to set up a few things"

"The ones for Ca... Chann..."

"Channukah" corrected Sybil "That's right"

"But it's Christmas, isn't it?" asked Saoirse, a little confused.

"It is, but we celebrate both"

"Why?"

"Because it's tradition, Martha has always done it this way"

"Why?"

"Because my grandfather, Isidore, was Jewish and when they married none of them had to give up traditions. They were equal. And uncle John is coming too"

And Sybil has lots of memories of when she was still a child of long Christmas dinners where the Crawleys set up the typical Christmas dinner and the Levinsons set up the Channukah dinner. It had always been fun and, growing up in a mix of different cultures and traditions, had always been something that she warded. Things had always been done this way and no one had abandoned the tradition when her grandfather had died. Of course, somehow that had been a cause for a little crack in the family bond: Martha or uncle Harold didn't come that often anymore, but those mixed up Christmases had remained as some sort of legacy in honour of the figure of Isidore.

"Is he Ju...Jewish too?"

"Aye, he is"

"Good!" exclaimed Evelyn "Let's just hope that Granny Martha comes before him. It would be really dreadful if he came and we didn't have the right things out. I'm sure her would be..."

She was interrupted by the doorbell ringing, and before anyone could do anything Saoirse and Evelyn run to the front door and opened it only to find Martha, surrounded by all sorts of bags and cartoons.

"Look at you both! All grown up!" she said, kneeling down and embracing her nieces holding them close for a moment and kissing both their cheeks.

"Granny! How are you?"

"Ready to celebrate. Where are your parents?"

"Inside" said Saoirse "We need hurry!"

"To hurry? Why?"

"Before uncle John comes! He doesn't celebrate Christmas, he celebrates Channukah!"

"Then we must get inside"

The girls led Martha into the living room, dragging along the smallest packages themselves, and were reached midway by Sybil and Tom who first welcomed her and then helped bring in the stuff.

"Look at you both. Happy and beautiful as always"

"Thank you, granny. Don't look bad yourself"

"You're a treasure Sybil, but my days are long gone"

"Don't say it like that"

"Well I'm not getting any younger"

"But you are not old either"

"Come here"

Sybil hugged her grandmother tight, refusing to let go for a couple of minutes. It had been some time now that she hadn't seen her and she hadn't realized how much she had missed seeing her grandmother. Family, there had been times when she had been annoyed by them all but, with time passing, all wounds had healed and with distance things had improved a lot. She was actually sorry that her mother and father, not to mention grandmother Violet were not there but the first of them were on an anniversary trip to Austria and the latter had gone on a trip around the world with Isobel, as the Crawley girls put it a pleasant journey with her best friends and a constant race to who could make the best faces. Next year, next year they had to make a full reunion.

"Mam. We need to move!"

"That's right. So, which one of my nieces wants to help me by setting the last thing at the right place. And of course putting the presents under the tree"

"You like it?" asked Saoirse, pointing at the tree she and her sister had decorated.

"Best tree ever. Now, let me see what we have here"

Martha opened the bag and started to pull out the presents that she had brought, that ended up piled neatly near the ones that were already there. When this task was finished, the bag neatly folded up and put out of the way, the box containing the Tupperwares were taken out and handed to Sybil and Tom who brought them in the kitchen, putting the food in the already heated oven to warm them up for a couple of minutes before bring it back to the living room, placed on the right plates and added to the rest of the food that was already on the table.

"What's that? It smells good!"

"That's latkes, fried potatoes pancakes, then we have rugelach, sweet cream cheese, and sufganyot, strawberry jam filled doughnuts"

"Mmmh, can I have one?"

"Me too!"

"Of course, but later. When it's time, I would give it to you already but then we would hear the never ending story of how I spoil you too much, and we don't want that, do we?" replied Martha with a wink.

Saoirse and Evelyn giggled and shook their heads.

"What next?"

"We have to light the candles in the Channukkià"

The doorbell rung again and while Martha showed the girls what they were to do next, Sybil ad Tom went to welcome the desk. Everyone was there, as if they had all arrived in a bulk. All punctual. All there. Mary and Matthew with little George and Isabella, Edith and Marigold accompanied by Sir Anthony, Kathleen, Tom's sister, accompanied by her husband John, and Tom's parents Ava and Sean.

"Sybil! Tom!"

"Good evening everyone! Do come in"

Hands were shaken, coats were taken off and brought in to Tom's study, and the children run away -after having quickly greeted their uncle and aunt, quietly whispering a merry Christmas followed by a 'are Saoirse and Evelyn in the living room?' in order to find their cousins as soon as possible.

"Ma, Dad. How are you?"

"Cold and it's been a long drive. Easier of course than the others coming from England but you know..."

"Aye. You don't like to drive, next year you could host the dinner" answered Tom to his father.

"Who says we will say yes to next year? Maybe we prefer our own solitude... Just kidding we are glad to be here" added his mother "Now, where are my nieces?"

"In the living room or running around with their cousins, but I'm sure that if you call for them they'll come right away. They were so excited to see the both of you again"

Tom accompanied his parents to the living room while Sybil stopped a moment to talk with her sisters, Matthew and Anthony asking about their lives back in England and if they had recently ad news from Robert and Cora, or Violet, to which the answer was positive on both fronts. Cora and Robert were, according to Mary, having the most terrific fun and the same went for Isobel and Violet. Although they were all sorry to miss the first Christmas dinner in years.

"Sybil"

"Kathleen"

"Oh come here!" said Kathleen, ignoring Sybil's stretched out hand and giving her sister-in-law a hug.

"You look stunning"

"I look like I swallowed a planet for lunch" she replied, as she placed her hands on her swollen belly.

"That's not true. You look beautiful and healthy as it should be" contradicted her husband John just before planting a kiss on her cheek and dragging her closer to him.

"I totally agree with him" said Sybil "Now come with me"

Everyone gathered in the living room, already taking place at the table. The children all sat down near one another, surging on their chairs and chattering happily and without interruption, trying to tell each other everything that had happened in the last months . From how school was going, to their friends, to the times they played with Isis, and - as far as it concerned Marigold - her life at home now that Sir Anthony had moved in with her and her mother.

"It's nice to have him at home! And he and mommy are going to marry!" said Marigold with a sing song voice "And he said I can call him dad, which is great because I want him to be my dad!"

"Congratulations!"

"Thank you" replied Edith shyly, not wanting to be at the centre of attention or rather, unable to know how to react to it.

"She has accepted it well I see" said Mary to her sister.

"Yes, more than well which was exactly what I hoped"

"And the idea of the marriage came all from her. Seriously, she looked at me and Edith during dinner and said something like _you should really marry him, mommy _"

"You really have a wise daughter Edith, all her mother"

"Not so much but..." she replied thinking about the relationship she had had with Michael Gregson. Looking back now it didn't seem the wisest of things having chosen to consent to start the affair with him and, were it not for the thought that otherwise Marigold would have never been born, if she could have gone back she wouldn't have done the same choice again.

"Oh come on. The only time you didn't act wisely - if you insist in calling it like that - the result was Marigold so don't tell anything about it"

Edith smiled and gave a loving look to her daughter who, being the eldest, was taking charge of the 'children side' of the table by collecting their plates, asking what they wanted to eat, and handing them to Tom and Sean who were filling everyone's plates.

"That's right, but sometimes I don't like my choices at all. Except... I love Marigold so I suppose..."

"Edith, stop it right there"

"All right"

"When's the wedding?" asked Kathleen.

"At the beginning of May!" squealed Marigold "And mam said that I can help her chose the dress, and that she'll go with dad on honeymoon in the summer and then we will all make a nice holiday. And when they are away for a couple of days, I'm going to stay with aunt Sybil and uncle Tom! And Evelyn! And Saoirse!"

"Yes!" added Evelyn and Saoirse, clearly excited at the thought that their beloved cousin was going to spend some time with them during the summer.

"If so, I'm sure you all can come to pay us a visit and see the baby. We would be glad to have you all as guests"

"Can we? Mom, can we go?"

"Of course" said Sybil "If we aren't bothering them"

"You won't" reassured them Kathleen.

"When is the baby due?" asked Mary.

"End of February, and I'm very looking forward to it"

"That I can easily imagine"

"You should be glad Robert isn't here" added Martha "He would have probably collapsed already hearing you talk about pregnancies"

"Is he that bad?" asked Ava, who had only met Robert once a couple of years earlier and didn't remember him this picky regarding conversations.

"Even worse" replied Matthew "It's funny, actually. And he always makes faces"

"That's true!" said Evelyn as she did her best to mimic her grandfather "Donk always goes like this" she added before making a shocked expression and crinkle her nose.

"You call your grandfather donk?"

"Yes! We all do"

"And by you..."

"Me, Saoirse, mommy and da. It's da who started it"

"Tom! I thought we did raise you up better than this"

Tom shrugged and looked away from his mother's disapproving glance "I didn't do it on purpose. I just said that the donk resembled Robert, Evelyn did the rest all by herself"

And, truth to be told, there were times that then nickname _donk _suited Robert more than best.

"You call him so yourself!" added Evelyn before starting to giggle.

"That was a secret!" joked Tom "It's a Bransons thing, it must remain such" he added with a wink.

"And, once he saw that Evelyn had no intention whatsoever to stop calling him so, he has accepted it as nickname. Although he and Saoirse are the only ones allowed to call him so" explained Mary.

Tom parents shook their heads but even them hearing the story couldn't help holding back a smile.

"He is, though he is still wandering from where the name come from" explained Anthony.

"Poor Robert. Though Cora knows, does she?" asked Martha.

"She guessed, but doesn't want any confirmation about it. Or she never asked about it" explained Sybil.

"She surely knows"

"Not many could come up with such ideas as you"

"Edith, should we take it as an insult?"

"No, but you always mutter around saying _we are the Bransons _and all. And, well, I think the two of you have more reasons to call him donk than we have"

Everyone laughed.

"You like it?" asked Saoirse at some point, looking at her uncle John.

"What?"

"Things granny Martha prepared"

"Yes. A lot, it's just as I'm used to. Thank you"

"You're welcome, it was my pleasure" replied Martha, smiling.

"It was thoughtful" agreed John.

"Indeed. Do you have any..."

"My late husband, Isidore. He was Jewish and when we married none of us wanted to give up its own culture. None of us didn't want the other to do so, because they were equally important. It was him to come up with the idea, he came to me and said "Martha, my love, we are going to celebrate both together. It's the best solution" and it has been done ever since. Cora and Harold grew up surrounded by both the cultures and despite it being difficult at times, it has always been the best"

"Does it work?"

"It works"

"We were thinking about doing something like that" admitted Kathleen "But we weren't sure that it could work or the whole thing would just blow up"

"It won't" Martha reassured her.

"Thank you" said John.

"We mix things to! The Irish and the British" said Evelyn.

"That you do" confirmed her grandparents.

Dinner finished and, as the last dishes where collected, the children run towards the Christmas tree and sat around it, uncaring to sit on the floor as long as it was secure that the task of handing out presents was theirs. The excitement, despite having already unwrapped presents that morning, was the same as always. The elder ones had the task to read the names of the recipients and the Saoirse proceeded with going to them and hand out the presents.

"Thank you" they all said as the child, with all seriousness, announced from time _this is yours. See? It's written here._

Uncaring about untidiness, paper was thrown around and piled up on the floor as soon as one more present had been unwrapped. The red and gold badges ended up either on the Christmas tree (because really, weren't the small IKEA animals much more prettier now that they had their own badge?) or on everyone's clothes (and at some point the children did start to run around sticking them to every possible surface). The content of the packages showed around and displayed proudly.

The first one to succumb to tiredness were the children, first of all Saoirse who fell asleep in her father's arms, but soon followed by all the others looking around with sleepy faces and small eyes and doing their best to stay awake without great success. They slowly stopped running around and after a while the same was done with any attempt of conversation.

"I'm going to put the girls to bed" announced Tom, when Evelyn's eyes too had closed.

"I think we should go too" replied Anthony "What do you think Marigold?"

"I'm awake dad. I'm grown up" she murmured before turning around on the armchair and leaning her head against the handle.

"Your right, Anthony" agreed Edith, getting up and stretching herself.

"We all should make our way out"

"You sure?" asked Sybil "You can stay a little longer if you wish"

"Let's go. After all we will see each other again before we fly back to England"

"Or America" said Martha.

"All right then, I'll take your coats"

The coats were handed to their right owners and put on. Matthew lifted up George, holding him in his arms without bothering to wake him up, and the same did Anthony with Marigold. John helped his wife up, leaning an arm around her waist and giving her a soft kiss on the temple.

"It's been a really fantastic evening" Kathleen congratulated Sybil "It was fun and a must do"

"Thank you"

"Well... next year mama, papa, granny and Isobel will be there too. We should do it at Downton, there will be more place. Would you all come?" asked Mary looking at Tom's parents and Kathleen and John "Or would it be asking too much with the flight and everything"

"We'll be there. We'll find a way, won't we Ava?"

"Yes, and we will finally see that estate of yours"

"You'll like it"

"Not that we are much fans of such things"

"Oh don't worry. Papa has just gotten used to the idea of Tom, it will take him just a minute to accept other people who don't see Downton as we do. But please, do come. Kathleen and John, the same goes for you it will be like this so..."

"Thank you" said John before Mary managed to finish her sentence.

"Granny, it unnecessary to invite you. And try to drag uncle Harold along, it's been years since we last saw him"

"I'll try"

The Bransons showed everyone the way out, accompanying them to the door and waved them off with the promise that either the following day or the next they would have seen each other one last time before the Crawleys and Strallans departure.

A loud sigh escaped Sybil's mouth as Tom closed the door. She was exhausted but also beyond happy that the evening had been a success. All the worries that had afflicted her hours earlier had been vain: there had been enough food, no one ended up fighting, no one ended up dead for food poisoning, and, most of all, she was happy that both sides of the family had fun and that Tom's parents and sister (along with her husband) had been invited so freely to Downton by Mary.

"See?" asked Tom "Everything went according to the plan. No one died"

Sybil looked at him and pouted "Are you making fun of me?"

"No, but the fact that you feared someone would have died..."

"Stop it" she scolded him.

"To tease you?" he asked, stepping closer until he was facing her "Or to do this?" he added before kissing her, chuckling as a soft moan escaped Sybil's mouth.

"Tease me, you know how you could spend your time better rather than making fun of me?"

"Kiss you again?" he asked with a cheeky smile.

"Help me with Saoirse and Evelyn"

"Aye, but before that..."

Tom took Sybil's hand and dragged her to the end of the corridor, under the door frame where days earlier Evelyn and Saoirse had asked them to put some mistletoe on. He wrapped his arms around her body and leaned forwards until their lips met.

"Merry Christmas, Mrs Branson" he whispered.

"Merry Christmas, Tom"


End file.
